OPEC Won’t Stop When Oil Hits $80

OPEC is not in a rush to start winding down the production cuts despite oil prices continuing their strong rally, with Brent briefly breaking above $79 a barrel on Tuesday. The cartel sees the price spike as only a short-term rally driven by geopolitical concerns rather than the fundamentals of a much tighter oil market, OPEC delegates and sources have told Reuters . Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s largest producer and de facto leader, views the temporary speculator-driven oil price rally as not enough to start raising production, according to an OPEC source familiar with Riyadh’s thinking. Supply and demand data need to point to an impact on supply in order for OPEC to make a decision to start winding down the cuts, the source told Reuters. Asked if $79 oil is too high, one OPEC delegate told Reuters: “Not yet.” OPEC’s original goal in the production cut pact was to […]